The Big Bang Theory
, Data, Picard, and a Borg in Season 6's "The Bakersfield Expedition"]] The Big Bang Theory is a CBS sitcom about four science nerds (Leonard Hofstadter, Sheldon Cooper, Howard Wolowitz and Raj Koothrappali) and the hot girl Penny who lives across the hallway. The four scientists are rabid science fiction fans and collectors of memorabilia thereof, Star Trek and Star Wars in particular, resulting in the show featuring a constant flow of Star Trek references in the vast majority of the show's episodes. A recurrent secondary character on the show is the socially awkward and consistently strapped-for-cash Stuart Bloom, owner of the comic book store the four protagonists frequent, and who, in an instance of cross-fertilization, has the in-universe animal Stuart named after him. ( ) Guest stars (sometimes recurrent) on the show include Brian George and Keith Carradine as Raj's and Penny's fathers, Pasha Lychnikoff as a cosmonaut on the International Space Station, Mark Harelik as the CalTech physics department chairman Gablehauser, with Stephen Hawking and Adam Nimoy as themselves. Star Trek actors Wil Wheaton, Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, LeVar Burton, and Brent Spiner have all made appearances on the show, as fictionalized versions of themselves. Cast member Kaley Cuoco also played William Shatner's daughter in Priceline.com commercials, and Iris Bahr had appeared in the original unaired pilot for the show. Both the The Big Bang Theory and Star Trek franchises are owned by CBS Corporation. Generic Star Trek references Miscellaneous Star Trek merchandise Even when Star Trek is not directly referenced to in the individual episodes, a plethora of its merchandise from various manufacturers is featured throughout the entire series as either props (most notably uniforms) or background set dressings in the homes of the four scientists or the comic book store they frequent. This merchandise originated from the archives of CBS Consumer Products, where it is habitually kept. Merchandise that warrants special attention, is addressed in their respective individual episode entries, listed below. "Wild Stacks" video slot machine In 2015 Australian gaming developer Aristocrat launched a three reel slot machine called "Big Bang Theory Slot Game". One of the payout symbols is a small pile of comic books.http://www.aristocrat-us.com/the-big-bang-theory Episodes Original unaired pilot Gilda says that she slept with Sheldon because of his completely accurate pon farr imitation, to which Sheldon responds with the Vulcan salute. Season 1 (2007-2008) "The Pancake Batter Anomaly" (Ep. 11) Sheldon and Leonard play three-dimensional chess. "The Bat Jar Conjecture" (Ep. 13) The episode begins with Howard announcing new info on the then-upcoming film, which leads into a discussion about alien private parts and Spock's conception. Later Sheldon is persuaded to join in the Physics Bowl by quoting Spock's dying words. Sheldon makes up TOS uniform-style shirts for his Physics Bowl team, with his teammates as redshirts. Ultimately in the final scene, to satisfy who is smarter between Leonard and Sheldon, Penny asks multiple real-world questions for which they are only able to give Star Trek-like answers, including Patrick Stewart or William Shatner being the Sexiest Man Alive and Tweety Bird thinking he saw a Romulan. "The Nerdvana Annihilation" (Ep. 14) The guys purchase a time machine prop from the movie and they decide to play with it. They wonder what time date to travel to and Sheldon suggests to Leonard that he should travel to the future to obtain a cloaking device and references . Sheldon gives the stardate of this episode as 5027.3, which supposedly converts to January 10th, 2328. Later, Leonard threatens to open up a Geordi La Forge action figure that's still in its original packaging. .|In dialog Leonard alludes to his La Forge action figure as being the rare production error version (highly valued by collectors) of the already rare 1992 first La Forge release by Playmates Toys (No. 6015), and constitutes a prime example on how well versed the series' writers are on what occupies the minds of Star Trek fans.}} Season 2 (2008-2009) "The Bad Fish Paradigm" (Ep. 01) Leonard compares his dating a woman to Raj and Howard's not dating anyone as "approach is warp speed." Later, Sheldon asks Penny if she speaks Klingonese. "The Codpiece Topology" (Ep. 02) Sheldon Cooper goes to a Renaissance fair dressed up like Spock pretending he's on a planet with a Renaissance theme due to the fair's complete disregard for historical accuracy. "The Panty Pinata Polarization" (Ep. 07) The gang plays Klingon Boggle, with a copy of The Klingon Dictionary on hand. Howard claims that the Yiddish culinary dish kreplach is also a hearty Klingon dumpling. "The Lizard-Spock Expansion" (Ep. 08) Sheldon expands the game of Rock-Paper-Scissors with additional options of "Lizard" and "Spock," the latter symbolized by the Vulcan live-long-and-prosper hand gesture. It was used initially to determine whether or not to watch . Later, Sheldon and Raj argue whether or is the worst Trek movie, and whether or is the best. "The White Asparagus Triangulation" (Ep. 09) Sheldon compares Dr. Stephanie Barnett as the Leonard McCoy to their social group's "landing party" and gives a somewhat off version of the Vulcan salute when he notices her observing the conversation. "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis" (Ep. 11) Penny gives Sheldon a used napkin autographed by Leonard Nimoy as a Christmas present. She apologizes because Nimoy wiped his mouth with it, but Sheldon is even more grateful, as now he has Nimoy's DNA, claiming he now will soon be able to "grow" a Leonard Nimoy for himself. "The Dead Hooker Juxtaposition" (Ep. 19) Penny compares the main characters' social naivete to not knowing how to put up their shields like on Star Trek. "The Hofstadter Isotope" (Ep. 20) Sheldon says Leonard had been watching by describing it as "the Deep Space Nine/Star Trek: The Original Series crossover episode." "The Vegas Renormalization" (Ep. 21) Sheldon's frequent answer of Spock during Twenty Questions. "The Classified Materials Turbulence" (Ep. 22) Leonard says that Howard's zero-gravity toilet for the International Space Station will allow its crew "to boldly go where no man has gone before." Season 3 (2009-2010) "The Electric Can Opener Fluctuation" (Ep. 01) Penny references as part of her comforting of Sheldon after he learns Leonard, Howard, and Raj had faked his discovery of magnetic monopoles in order to keep him happy. Sheldon wears a goatee resembling the one wears in . A recurring joke is Sheldon's "Vulcan hearing." "The Creepy Candy Coating Correlation" (Ep. 05) Sheldon states he used to be a Wil Wheaton fan until Wil abruptly pulled out of a convention Sheldon had traveled ten hours by bus to attend and get his autograph. During a customizable card game tournament Wil is participating in, Sheldon constantly quotes Khan Noonien Singh from , uttering the proverb "Revenge is a dish that is best served cold" in original Klingon. When Wheaton tricks Sheldon out of a sure victory, Sheldons cries out "Wheaton" to the heavens, in imitation of Kirk's "Khan" cries in The Wrath of Khan. "The Adhesive Duck Deficiency" (Ep. 08) Trying to get Sheldon to drive faster, Penny says, "Warp speed ahead, Mr. Spock", to which Sheldon replies that that order would never be given to the science officer, but to the navigator/helmsman instead. "The Maternal Congruence (Ep. 11) When Leonard asks what he truly wants, Sheldon answers, "What I want is to be departing on the starship ''Enterprise in a one-man shuttlecraft headed for the planetoid I rule, known as Sheldon Alpha Five." "The Bozeman Reaction" (Ep. 13) Sheldon moves to Bozeman, Montana, which is where the ''Phoenix had been launched, after the apartment is burglarized. He says "Live long and prosper" and gives the Vulcan salute in a farewell video. "The Large Hadron Collision" (Ep. 15) In order to persuade Leonard, who is planning to take Penny along as a Valentine gift, to take him instead to the CERN Large Hadron Collider in Switserland, Sheldon goes even as far as allowing Leonard to watch Babylon 5. Prohibited to be seen by Sheldon, Leonard loves the series but had until then lost each and every argument they had over it. However, Sheldon is so desperate to go to CERN that he purports to set aside his disdain for the series, even though it, according to him, "(...)failed as drama, science fiction and is hopelessly derivative". "The Excelsior Acquisition" (Ep. 16) Sheldon reveals that Leonard Nimoy took a restraining order out against him after receiving one from Stan Lee. Additionally, when Leonard is asking Penny to guess who Stan is, she incorrectly assume he was on Star Trek. "The Precious Fragmentation" (Ep. 17) Howard says he knows a guy who can obtain black market phasers and panties worn by Nichelle Nichols on the show. "The Pants Alternative" (Ep. 18) Assuming he was passed over for a science award, Sheldon compares himself to the William Shatner of science after musing why Shatner was not in . "The Wheaton Recurrence" (Ep. 19) Wil Wheaton returns for a bowling game. Sheldon names their team "The Wesley Crushers." Later, Howard asks Wil if he had sex with Whoopi Goldberg. "The Staircase Implementation" (Ep. 22) As part of Sheldon's "first barrier to roommatehood," he asks Leonard "Kirk or Picard?" Leonard replies "Original Series over Next Generation, but Picard over Kirk." "The Lunar Excitation" (Ep. 23) As Howard and Raj, having secretly signed Sheldon up with an online dating service, try to convince him to at least meet the woman he has been matched with, Raj reminds him that even Spock dated once every seven years, so Sheldon quickly shoots back that pon farr had nothing to do with dating: "His blood boiled with mating lust". Season 4 promotional ads In one, Sheldon builds an Original Series transporter to beam them (with Next Generation-style visual effects) from their old Monday night timeslot to Thursday. In another he and Leonard again play three-dimensional chess while discussing the move. Season 4 (2010-2011) "The Hot Troll Deviation" (Ep. 04) Howard has a model in his bedroom. An imaginary George Takei (wearing his Hikaru Sulu costume from ) appears to give Howard romantic advise. Likewise, actress Katee Sackoff appears as her Battlestar Galactica counterpart, for whom Howard has the hots, and starts bickering with Takei, questioning his credentials to give Howard romantic advise, while poking fun at Takei's homosexuality. Both however, are also lamenting and exchanging notes on being typecast as Sulu and Starbuck respectively. writing staff. Sackoff had already appeared as a figment of Howard's overheated imgination in the prior episode "The Vengeance Formulation" (S03E09).|The Enterprise-D model is the 1994 "Battle-damaged" version (No. 6171) from the Playmates Toys starship line, and will continue to turn up in several subsequent episodes as part of the standing set.}} "The Apology Insufficiency" (Ep. 07) Taken as proof that he has wronged Howard, Sheldon is dreaming of a Gorn sitting on the couch reading a magazine. He later compares his problem of Howard refusing to accept his apology with the no-win Kobayashi Maru scenario, and is impressed by Penny's knowledge that Kirk cheated on the test, enticing him to try something similar on Howard. "The 21-Second Excitation" (Ep. 08) Leonard mentions how they all waited fourteen hours to see . Later, when Wil Wheaton – deemed the Jar Jar Binks of the Star Trek universe by Sheldon – jumps the line to see Raiders of the Lost Ark, Sheldon quotes Picard's "The line must be drawn HERE!" line from . "The Boyfriend Complexity" (Ep. 09) Sheldon comments that he doesn't care for novelty editions of Monopoly, preferring the regular and Klingon editions. Howard and Raj play a game of Star Trek-themed battleships. When Howard notices that two squares are a hit but the one in the middle is a miss, Raj comments that his starship has a hole in the middle. When asked what starship has a hole in the middle, Raj says "a Romulan battle bagel." "The Alien Parasite Hypothesis" (Ep. 10) Sheldon suggests that Amy use kolinahr to suppress her new-found sexual arousal after asking her if she'd seen and then says not to. "The Bus Pants Utilization" (Ep. 12) Sheldon's passive-aggressive stance against the guys for kicking him out of their app design team includes playing the Original Series theme on a theremin. "The Love Car Displacement" (Ep. 13) Leonard uses the Romulan Neutral Zone as a metaphor for how he and Penny will share a bed without becoming intimate. When he suggests they do get intimate in the context of how often the Neutral Zone was entered by both the Federation and Romulan Star Empire, Penny says she's raised shields over the lower half of her body. "The Thespian Catalyst" (Ep. 14) Sheldon and Penny act out a fan fiction story he'd written as a child where he's whisked away to the 23rd century, with Penny playing Spock. She perfectly executes the hand salute at one point. "The Toast Derivation" (Ep. 17) Sheldon invited LeVar Burton over to the apartment via Twitter. At the end of the episode, he sticks his head in and gets too weirded out by the sight of three other guys singing karaoke. He then leaves and says he's so done with Twitter. "The Prestidigitation Approximation" (Ep. 18) Leonard says to Priya that the only Star Trek uniforms he has are the [[Starfleet uniform (mid 2260s-early 2270s)|everyday and dress ones from the Original Series]], and then she reveals that Raj has an Uhura dress when Leonard suggests she wear one. "The Zarnecki Incursion" (Ep. 19) Sheldon carries a bat'leth with him to the house of the guy who hacked his World of Warcraft account. "The Agreement Dissection" (Ep. 21) Sheldon cites as his inspiration for blackmailing Leonard into signing a new roommate agreement that favors him. He then shows an okudagram-styled auto-destruct-esque countdown timer on his laptop showing how much time Leonard has before Priya's parents are emailed about her dating Leonard. Sheldon then tells her that while she may have gone to the Faculty of Law at Cambridge University, he's an honorary graduate of Starfleet Academy. "The Wildebeest Implementation" (Ep. 22) Sheldon's three-player variation of chess includes a space designated as a transporter pad. "The Roommate Transmogrification" (Ep. 24) Raj overhears Leonard and Priya having an Original Series-themed sex fantasy. Season 5 (2011-2012) "The Russian Rocket Reaction" (Ep. 05) Wil Wheaton throws a party at his house, which has a painting of him as Wesley Crusher in uniform and an Enterprise-D model. Raj says he talked with Alice Krige's gynecologist, referring to Alice as "The Borg Queen From First Contact." Wil gives Sheldon an autographed still-in-package Playmates Toys Wesley action figure, but Brent Spiner promptly opens it upon seeing it. Brent then offered Sheldon a autographed still-in-package Data action figure to make up for it, but Sheldon declines and declares Brent his new mortal enemy. "The Rhinitis Revelation" (Ep. 06) There's a ''Next Generation'' tricorder displayed on the bookcase behind the couch. "The Recombination Hypothesis" (Ep. 13) Sheldon ordered a life-size cardboard standee of Spock for his room, but the company sent him , prompting him to snarl "Live long and suck it, Zachary Quinto!" "The Vacation Solution" (Ep. 16) Bernadette had rejected Howard's suggestion to have wedding invitations in Klingonese. "The Rothman Disintegration" (Ep. 17) Kripke has Sheldon explain Rock-Paper-Scissors-Lizard-Spock to him at least three times to mess with him. Sheldon later proposes a trivia contest with The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager being four of the five categories. "The Weekend Vortex" (Ep. 19) Amy mistakenly refers to the Star Wars video game the guys are playing as a Star Trek video game. Penny corrects her, saying the guys don't like when the two franchises are mistaken for one another, even though Penny, as far as she herself is concerned, does not perceive any difference between the two either. "The Transporter Malfunction" (Ep. 20) Penny bought Sheldon and Leonard a mint-in-box [[Mego|1975 Star Trek transporter toy]] each. However, they refused to play with them as the toys would lose some of their perceived value within toy collector circles. That night, Sheldon dreamed that his Mr. Spock action figure told him that it was illogical to own a toy that he wouldn't play with. Shortly afterwards, Sheldon accidentally broke his transporter while playing with it and then replaced it with Leonard's. Later, he had a nightmare about being chastised by Mr. Spock about his actions and was subsequently attacked by a Gorn. Appropriately chastened, Sheldon confessed his guilt to his roommate. "The Hawking Excitation" (Ep. 21) Howard says "no" in Klingonese when telling Sheldon that he wouldn't introduce him to . .}} "The Stag Convergence" (Ep. 22) Sheldon tells Wil Wheaton (who said he was attending Howard's bachelor party because it was a welcome alternative to George Takei's hot tub parties) to "talk to the hand" and gives him the Vulcan salute. "The Launch Acceleration" (Ep. 23) Howard tells Raj "You watch ''Star Trek, I live it''" when discussing Howard's aborted mission to the International Space Station. Leonard and Sheldon again play three-dimensional chess. Later, Leonard comes home to find Sheldon and Amy playing "Star Trek doctor" with Sheldon uncomfortably lying on the couch while Amy, dressed in a sciences division blue ''Original Series'' women's uniform, pretend-scans him with a toy medical tricorder. "The Countdown Reflection" (Ep. 24) Despite his initial offer to do so being soundly rejected, Sheldon performs part of Howard and Bernadette's wedding in Klingonese and says "and the Klingon High Council" when pronouncing them man and wife. When the rocket is launched, Sheldon quotes the title sequence from The Original Series saying "Boldly go, Howard Wolowitz". Season 6 (2012-2013) "The Habitation Configuration" (Ep. 07) Sheldon tries to do a segment on Trek flags on his "Fun With Flags" web show, first with Wil Wheaton (who keeps trying to do a bit on the Federation flag much to Amy's dislike) and later with LeVar Burton, telling his viewers to "set phasers to fun." To get Amy to see things his way in the matter, Sheldon gives her the TNG Complete Series DVD Boxset and "briefly" describes to her through her closed apartment door. Wil's house number is 1701, the Enterprise s hull number. "The Fish Guts Displacement" (Ep. 10) Amy suggests that Sheldon punish her by not letting her see the new movie. "The Bakersfield Expedition" (Ep. 13) While driving to the Bakersfield, California Comic-Con, the guys stop at Vasquez Rocks to pose for photos in their The Next Generation costumes: Leonard as Picard, Sheldon as Data, Raj as Worf, and Howard as a Borg. After their car gets stolen, Sheldon states that they're all a landing party, obligated as such to overcome hardships. Failing to get a lift and being thrown refuge at by a passing car, its driver shouting "nerds" at them, the boys eventually stumble into a roadside restaurant in their disheveled Star Trek outfits, being met with wary bemusement by the other patrons, chuckling at the "trekkies" – particularly after the "Borg" Howard asks if his mother should pick them up. The ordeal causes the despondent boys to question their love for Star Trek. After it is decided to rent a car instead to return home, Raj, more steadfastly holding on to his love, asks if the car can be from the rental agency Enterprise. At the same time the boys have their ordeal, Chris Hemsworth's Marvel Comics character Thor becomes a point of argument for Penny, Amy, and Bernadette, when they made an effort to understand their boyfriends' nerdiness. When the boys return home, weary of being trekkies because of their ordeal, they incredulously overhear their girlfriends' heated nerd discussion, causing their own inner nerds to be revitalized. On the assumption they have stumbled into an alternate reality and with their disheveled costumes put in order, the revived landing party prepares to break into the room to investigate with "phasers on stun", since Leonard in particular does not want to "vaporize" Penny, as he will never be able again to get another girlfriend that gorgeous. agency is named after the World War II aircraft carrier on which its founder had served, and after which Gene Roddenberry had named his fictional starship.|This episode constitutes the series' most outspoken commentary yet, on how non-fan society at large generally views the "Trekdom" phenomenon.}} "The Contractual Obligation Implementation" (Ep. 18) Sheldon names Star Trek writer D.C. Fontana as a woman who had to use her initials to hide her gender in her field of work. "The Love Spell Potential" (Ep. 23) Sheldon says he's tired of Leonard always invoking Zachary Quinto whenever Sheldon doesn't like an impending change. "The Bon Voyage Reaction" (ep. 24) Sheldon explains his personal trick to overcoming his social anxiety was to picture everyone as a Star Trek character. Apparently Raj is "Uhura" while Leonard is "Unnamed Crew Member In A Red Shirt". Season 7 (2013-2014) "The Hofstadter Insufficiency" (Ep. 01) During Leonard's absence, Penny and Sheldon play a game of 3D chess. Sheldon also starts to ask Penny about Starfleet captains, before being cut off by her. "The Discovery Dissipation" (Ep. 10) To help Sheldon feel better about Leonard disproving his discovery of a new element, Wil Wheaton comes by and tells Sheldon that for a while he regretted being Wesley Crusher. Season 8 (2014-2015) "The Misinterpretation Agitation" (Ep. 07) Sheldon offers a beverage to a Dr. Oliver Lorvis after he admits his intention to give some flowers to Penny. Later when receiving his drink, he compliments Sheldon's Star Trek mug and mentions that he got an original phaser, having given Gene Roddenberry a vasectomy. "The Champagne Reflection" (Ep. 10) Sheldon introduces LeVar Burton for the final "Fun With Flags" webisode by saying he "puts the Geordi in your La Forge." Later LeVar says he should've taken Wil Wheaton's advice about getting a gate for his house when Sheldon tells him the web show's been resurrected. Season 9 (2015-2016) "The Spock Resonance" (Ep. 07) Wil Wheaton and Adam Nimoy come over to interview Sheldon for Adam's documentary about Leonard Nimoy. Sheldon tells the pair that the episode that really had meaning in his life was . During their visit, Sheldon presents the napkin complete with Nimoy's DNA that he received from Penny as gift in the second season "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis". "The Opening Night Excitation" (Ep. 11) Sheldon has a poster for in his room. Wil Wheaton goes back to evil mode by showing up at the movie theater showing of Star Wars: The Force Awakens dressed as Spock. trailer showing before it. The visual effects of this, and all other Star Wars movies, were produced by Industrial Light & Magic, who has also done so for the majority of the .|Wheaton purposely showing up in his Star Trek outfit and subsequently being booed and hissed at by the Star Wars audience, is a reference to the very fierce competition that had existed between the fanbases of the two respective franchises, and which is to an extent still upheld to this day by the more fanatical fans.}} Season 11 (2017-2018) "The Retraction Reaction" (Ep. 02) Sheldon opens up his stash of Romulan ale (blue-dyed vodka) for a depressed Leonard. Penny later joins them and claims that while she doesn't know who the Romulans are, they sure know how to party. "The Relaxation Integration" (Ep. 03) Sheldon tells Amy that he will appear at their wedding with a tuxedo over a Star Trek uniform. "The Explosion Implosion" (Ep. 04) Leonard owns a Captain Kirk shirt, which needs to be dry cleaned. "The Proton Regeneration" (Ep. 06) Sheldon competes with Wil Wheaton for a role in a remake of "Professor Proton". Wheaton gets the part, and is put back on Sheldon's list of enemies. External link * de:Parodien und Anspielungen auf Star Trek (Fernsehen)/The Big Bang Theory Big Bang Theory, The